In the Shadows
by HydeLuver
Summary: All is easier when it's hidden...two-shot
1. Chapter 1

The dimmest light emanates through the heavy red curtains waking Hyde from his deep slumber. He slowly opens his eyes, trying to adjust to his environment. He peers over at the clock hanging on the wall opposite him and groans when he sees how early it still is. He takes a moment before getting off the bed and over to the window where he pulls the curtains completely closed. The bit of streaming light is immediately replaced by darkness and as he turns back around, all he can see are shadows. A spectrum of gray and black filling a room he is unfamiliar with. His eyes, having adjusted to the light, struggle to make out the newly darkened objects around him. He stands still and looks around. He recognizes a dresser and a rocking chair over on his left and a small bedside table on his right, sitting comfortably in between the large bed and the door.

He can not see much but knows that there is a clutter of clothes sprawled on the floor around him. The events of the previous night still fresh in his mind. He sighs and starts walking back towards the bed, needing a few more hours of sleep before being able to function properly.

A short time passes before he is awakened again, this time by soft shuffling. He lays awake quietly for a minute, observing his lover move gracefully around the room, trying to clean up and pick up the scattered garments. He can't make out her features, but her shape intrigues him. The small curves on her body, the perkiness of her naked breasts, the away of her curls entice him and he is no longer sleepy. He continues to look on as she places the clothes on the rocking chair and walks into the small bathroom connected to the room. He sees the light coming from the small opening of the door and smiles when she starts humming a song they had been listening to the night before.

Surely the night was unforgettable for her too.

A few minutes later she emerges from the bathroom and he stretches his arm to the lamp on the bedside table and flicks the switch, filling the room with brightness.

"Steven," she shrieks, "you scared me. I thought you were asleep."

Hyde sits up on the bed, resting against the backboard. "I was" is all he says.

"It's a bit early for you isn't?" she says with a sly smile which secretly drives him wild.

"I could say the same for you" he answers. He rubs his eyes to adjust his vision. He wants to see her, focus on her naked form and admire every inch of it. No matter how often he sees her like this, he never takes it for granted.

"Well, you know what the say about the early worm" she says as she starts shuffling through the pile of clothes on the chair in search of her bra. She finally finds the small undergarment and slips it on.

"What are you doing today?" he asks groggily watching her get dressed.

"Got a few errands to do before work" she tells him as she slips her pants on. The black dress pants are a bit wrinkled from being rolled up under a stack of clothes. She tries to smooth them against her leg as best she can and furrows her forehead a bit when the tactic proves unsuccessful.

"I have a better idea" he says as he gets off the bed.

"Oh? What's that?" Jackie asks, her tone flirty.

Hyde walks over to her and wraps his arms around her small waist. He lowers his lips and places light kisses down from neck to her shoulders. His hand roams her body slightly, enough contact to send small shivers down her body and intrigue her. "You could stay here and we can have a repeat of last night."

Jackie turns around to face him and kisses him. It's a quick kiss, nothing too sensual but still to excite him. "You're cute when you just wake up" she says in a low voice once they part.

"Cute enough to make you stay?" he asks. His eyes are not yet fully opened and Jackie takes a step back to get a better look at him. In his groggy, half-asleep state, Steven Hyde is the most tranquil person she has ever encountered. This isn't his usual zen-mode where some part of him is still on high-defensive mode. As he is now, standing in front of her, his guards are completely down. He is free to say anything and everything that comes to mind without the worry that anyone around him will judge him. He can be sappy and romantic. He can tell her that he wants her to stay and she knows that he actually means it.

"You know I can't do that" she says. Immediately, she knows that tranquil Hyde is about to disappear. They always end up having this same argument, regardless of how great their time together leading up to it was.

"This again" he says as he takes a step back from her.

"You're the one who starts it every time. I have a busy day Steven, I can't stay here and argue about this with you" she says as she goes back to getting dressed. Hyde watches as she slips her sweater over her head and shakes her curls out afterward. Of course they're still in tact, because no part of Jackie Burkhart can be imperfect, even this early in the morning.

"At some point we're going to have to figure this out" he tells her.

"Yeah, not today though."

"When then Jackie?" Hyde walks over to the bed and sits at the edge of it. Still half-naked, he stares intently as she gets ready to leave him behind. One shoe on, followed by the other. With each piece of clothing she puts on, they are moving further away from any sort of resolution. He finds it interesting having the tables turned as they have, with him being the one begging her to stay and solidify their relationship. She's the one resisting now, pulling away from him every time the discussion comes up.

"Steven, what do you want me to say? We've gone over this before and you know why I can't stay. I thought we were on the same page."

"What page is that exactly?"

"Why are you making this more complicated than it needs to be? I can't stay and you know why. Don't make things harder than they need to be." Jackie walks over to the bed and kneels down on the floor between Hyde's legs. She grabs his hands and looks up at him. Her heart skips a beat when she sees his clear blue eyes staring back at her. He releases one hand and caresses her cheek. "I love you and I love being with you. I wouldn't trade this for anything in the world, but I need us to both to understand what is going on here" she says. Hyde pulls his hand away and lets out a loud breath.

"I'm getting really tired of it Jackie" he tells her.

"I know baby."

"I'm serious" he reinforces.

"Steven, I know. We can talk about it next time I promise, but right now I have to go" she says before getting back on her feet and grabbing her coat from behind the chair where now only all of Hyde's clothes lay. She slips the sleeves on and then fetches her bag from the floor. She walks back over to Hyde who is still sitting at the edge of the bed and kisses him once more. "I'll call you later?" she says.

Hyde simply nods and watches as she starts walking towards the door. "Jackie" he calls out before she exits. He reaches over to the small bedside table just a few inches from where he's sitting and grabs a small, gold band. "Don't forget this" he says.

Jackie walks over to him, grabs her wedding ring and slips it on. She frowns and nods her head, "we'll figure it out Steven" she says unconvincingly.

"Sure" is all he says before she exits. He lays back on the bed, already annoyed at the thought of her going home to her husband.

They had to figure this out. Soon. 

**Author's Note:** _Dum Dum Dum... I tend to get ideas for stories and get a little obsessed with them until I can finally publish them and this one's been festering in my head for a couple of weeks now. Now that I see it I think it could potentially have an additional chapter or so, but for now it stands on its own. If anyone wants to take on a "what happens next" story, that would be cool too! Anyway, hope you enjoyed it and til next time!_


	2. Chapter 2

**Author's Note:** _I was re-reading this story recently and I kept feeling that something was missing so I decided to write another chapter to give it some sort of resolution. I'm not sure if I'm completely finished with it just yet, I might want to add another chapter at some point because I still think I could add something to the story but like with the first chapter, I'll let it stand as is for now._

Less than a week after their most recent argument, Hyde finds himself in yet another motel room making love to his girl, at least for the moment. He watches as she wriggles under him and reaches for the lamp switch to turn off the light. "Sorry, I like the dark better" she says re-positioning herself so that he was perfectly in between her legs.

Hyde simply nods his head and proceeds what he was doing. He revels on the sensation of her legs wrapped tightly around his waist and her nails digging on his the flesh of his back. He moans as she breathes against his neck and she growls his name, begging him to go deeper, to go faster.

"Don't stop baby" she says, her voice husky and in that moment he wants to give her everything.

"Never" he tells her and he positions his hips as close as he can against hers and thrusts deeper and firmer into her.

"Oh fuck Steven, just like that" she moans and he feels her clenching around his member and this just encourages him to give her more. His thrusts grow faster and harder and he can feel himself close to climax as well.

"Fuck" he grunts as he feels himself explode within her. After a few more seconds, his body relax on top of her and both of their breaths are loud and unsteady. Hyde rests his forehead on her chest and hears her laughing. He lifts his head to look at her and raises an eyebrow.

"That was amazing" she says still laughing which makes him smile. Hyde withdraws from inside of her and rolls onto the bed next to her. He lays with his eyes closed and a smile on his face and her laugh starts to subside. For a while, the two of them lay in silence just embracing the moment.

After a few minutes, Hyde turns his head to look at her and smiles when he sees her eyes are closed and her hair is feathered on the pillow. He watches as her bare chest rises and falls steadily matching her breathing. This girl drove him absolutely crazy. It wasn't just the sex but rather the connection they've always had. Every time he has her to himself, he can't help but explore every centimeter of her body wanting to memorize every curve on her small frame. He loved making her moan and the way her back arched when he entered her or kissed her neck. He loved the way she would groan his name and how her body would match his rhythm without much effort. What he loved the most though, was the way she didn't take her eyes off of him when they made love. The glossy, lusty way she looked at him was enough to set him over the edge.

"Stay here" he says to her.

Jackie turns her head slowly and opens her eyes to look at him. She smiles but shakes her head. "You know I can't do that" she tells him.

"Jackie, I want to wake up next to you, just once" he replies.

"Steven, you know that's not possible" she says as she looks away from him and stares at the ceiling. Her breathing has slowed down and she closes her eyes again.

"Then make it possible" he tells her.

Jackie lets out a low laugh and shakes her head from side to side, not bothering to open her eyes. "You sure have a knack of complicating this" she says, more to herself than to him.

"We're already past complicated don't you think?" he responds to her as he rolls on his side and off the bed. He picks up his boxers from the floor and slips them on.

"No Steven, I think this can be pretty simple actually if you stop expecting me to just leave my life behind to roll around with you on a bed all day" she says finally sitting up on the bed. She brings the covers up to cover her breasts and she watches as he walks around the room collecting his garments. He stops once she says that and turns to look at her.

"Where do I fit into your life then Jackie?" he asks, now feeling his anger slowly building. He was well aware that they each had their own lives outside of the motel rooms they frequented, however, he hadn't realized he was a mere distraction for her because she sure as hell was more than one to him.

"Don't do that Steven, you know I love you" Jackie says as she brings herself to sit on her knees now.

"That doesn't answer the question does it?" he says and goes back to dressing himself.

"Damn it will you stop making this harder than what it needs to be? I'm doing the best I can okay? What we're doing is reckless and I love you but I'm trying my best so that no one gets hurt" she says getting off the bed.

Hyde turns back to her and for a second, observes her naked body just a few feet from where he's standing. He hated that even during moments like this she had such a strong effect on him. "You mean so that _he_ doesn't get hurt" he says referring to Jackie's husband. Rarely did they acknowledge his existence when they were alone, unless it was when Hyde expressed how tired he was growing of their arrangement, but she would just feed him a few loving words and ease his emotions. He would then end up back in a bed with her and the cycle continued.

"That's not fair Steven" she says.

"Listen, I can't keep being the guy you get to fuck because your husband isn't giving you what you need" Hyde says as he pulls his belt through his pant's loops.

Jackie's eyes grow wide and she clenches her jaw tightly. "Oh fuck you. This is not what this is and you know it" she says.

"Then what the fuck is this Jackie, because clearly this is something different to you" Hyde says as his voice rises in frustration. Jackie grabs her dress from a chair just a few inches from her and quickly slips it on. If they're about to have an argument, she wasn't going to do it naked.

"You need to lower your voice" she says and she smooths the dress down a bit. "You knew from the beginning that I was married, that was never something I hid from you. I also told you that whatever happened, my marriage comes first so don't try to flip the script on me now Steven."

"Oh give me a break. Admit it, you're not happy and that's why you come here once a week" he says.

"You don't even know what you're talking about. I'm very happy. My husband makes me very happy and I have a great life outside of these walls believe it or not."

"Then why are you here with me right now?"

"Because _I love you_ Steven, that's why I'm here" Jackie tells him.

"Right, you love me, your husband. Is there anyone else I'm missing? Maybe someone I don't know about?" Hyde replies sarcastically.

"Don't be an asshole okay?" she says folding her hands across her chest.

"Fuck Jackie, you don't get it do you? It's not enough for me to have you part time. I want you, all the time. I _need_ you here. With me. I want what he has" Hyde says, allowing himself to be vulnerable so she can see how much this means to him.

Jackie rolls her eyes and runs a hand through her messy hair. "You had that once and you didn't want it! You don't get to claim it now. This is what I can give you Steven, this is _all_ I can give you."

Hyde stares at her silently for a moment. He hates how much it gets thrown in his face that he did have her once and that he screwed up what they had. It boggled him that decisions he made as a teenager are still holding so much weight in his adult life, and it all comes down to his decision to walk away from her in Chicago. "It's not enough" he tells her, his tone flat and he grabs his sunglasses from the small dresser behind him and puts them on.

"Why can't this be enough for you Steven? Why can't you just be happy with what we're doing?" she exclaims getting frustrated and feeling like she's losing him at the same time.

Hyde looks at her once more, and shakes his head. "I can't keep doing this with you Jackie. It's done" he says before turning towards the door behind him.

"Steven.."

"Steven" he hears her yell after him as the door closes behind him.


End file.
